It’s the end of a busy week and your principal contacts you to say he/she has found some funds for your program, but needs your wish list by the end of the day--and it’s already 3:00 pm! While it’s exciting to hear this financial support has come to your program, what IS your wish list and HOW do you have it prioritized?

Hi to all of West Music’s great customers from Janet Stephens at Bear Paw Creek. Did you ever wonder how a bean bag is made or who makes it? Here’s a little history of how I came to the point of sewing approximately 10,000 bean bags per year.

Halloween is just around the corner, so why not incorporate a little “spook” into your teaching? Whether you are a parent, elementary school teacher, or a private teacher, you can add something fun to do with the little ones this Halloween. Check out The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams. This book lends itself to an exciting lesson in which you can incorporate many different kinds of rhythmic instruments to play the parts of spooky sound effects that all children will find exciting. Be prepared to “SHAKE, SHAKE,” and “WIGGLE, WIGGLE” along with this terrifying tale.

West Music Company is celebrating being 70 years strong this year! Here’s some background on how the West Music Catalog Department started……

Dreading that next kindergarten (or pre-school) music class? Simply placing a puppet on your hand (no voice, just shaking the head up and down or side-to-side) will transform your room. A puppet works magic in lower elementary classes! It doesn’t need to be Freddie, any puppet will do that you build a story around. Obviously, I use Freddie, so here is what I do at the beginning of every year. It works like a charm! I use this lesson plan EVERY year with the kindergarten music class. It works with Pre-School, too!

We've digitized the new 2011-2012 West Music catalog, and released it for free download! Now you can take a portable, digital version of the catalog wherever you go, or get a free copy anywhere that there's internet access. Every product is linked to a web page where you can place an order. Simply click on the product's Item number (i.e. 800965) to view an even more detailed description, along with options to add it to your shopping cart and place an order.

West Music Hand Percussion Consultant Jennifer Winegarden walks us through Remo's Paddle Drums - just in time for summer! Be sure to pick up a set for the classroom, or family fun!

Orff-Schulwerk is an internationally accepted approach for teaching music and movement in an elementary music classroom. The famous German composer and educator, Carl Orff, along with his colleague, Gunild Keetman, developed this approach. “Schulwerk” is a German word meaning “work for the school.” Carl Orff evolved the basic texts for the Schulwerk as models for teachers worldwide. Now translated into many languages, Orff-Schulwerk is based on the traditional music and folklore of each country in which it is used. The Orff-Schulwerk approach is widely used by music educators in private and public schools throughout the United States and the world.

Do you ever have those times where you are just completely obsessed with things? You know, so much so that your friends give you a hard time about it every time they can. Not a DSM-IV type of obsession, just a healthy love and passion for something. Lately, mine has been cupcakes. I don’t know why, but my world just changes when I eat a cupcake with extra frosting (cream cheese if you are wondering). As a music therapist, we go through phases where we are obsessed with certain instruments or activities.

Autism is often isolating for both the people who have the disorder, and their loved ones. But parents who are joining with music therapists from West Music stores to unlock the door to speaking, learning and life. Learning the alphabet, it's a traditional first step for toddlers. But for 3-year-old Memphis Hueneke, music is a magic key. "When he was a young age, he didn't make any noise, any vocal noise, even a humming sound in his throat," mother Jessy Hueneke said.

Music is a great way to enhance development in young children. Anyone can use music, whether they are parents, daycare providers, teachers, or therapists. One aspect of singing that is important with young children is vocal play. Vocal play can be used from infancy through preschool. With babies, engaging in vocal play is very validating to them. Think of “motherese” and the natural lilting way that your voice changes when you speak lovingly to a baby. This is a natural way of speaking that enhances development. If they make noises at you, imitate them back. Make your noises sound like questions and answers. Have a “conversation” with them. It’s never too early to teach them how to have a real conversation someday. Don’t worry about feeling silly, babies love this!

Marge and Richard Troeh of Global Music Connections show you how much music you'll find in books. Get curriculum ideas, not to mention FUN, for early childhood reading.

I start to wonder when the student has time to eat or sleep. We are starting to hear the term “over programmed” more often in reference to children’s schedules. Often, talented children feel the need to be a part of everything. Sometimes, it becomes a way to fill up time with the feeling that a busy child is a happy child because they can’t possibly be bored. I’ve even seen students enrolled in everything in a parents attempt to make sure that the student doesn’t miss out on the things the parent didn’t get to do.

With the start of the fall semester of Kindermusik classes, I am reminded once again of the many ways that music participation helps children grow and learn. A few years ago, one of my Kindermusik parents came to the first class of the new fall semester with tears in her eyes. Her son, Michael, was 2 ½ years old, and had been in Kindermusik since he was an infant. He was a quiet child and rarely participated in class, but would show his mom how much he had learned when he was at home—often singing the songs and playing his instruments as we had in class and more. Though I frequently remind parents that every child is different in how he or she experiences class, this mom still wished Michael would actively demonstrate in class how much he enjoyed coming.

Music Advocacy: Music Matters! Let your voice be heard about the importance of music education for every child! Find out more from the links on this page.

From the AMC: With the holiday season fast approaching, it’s time to start shopping for that guitar, violin, oboe, tuba, piano or whatever instrument your musical child is begging to receive as his or her top-choice gift. But first it’s important to be an educated consumer so that the new violin doesn’t wind up collecting dust under the bed or being returned to the store.

Music Education with Folksong Picture Books! This package contains the first four books in John Feierabend's picture book series of folksongs. Each hardcover book has the folksong and story adapted by Feierabend. The songs are notated with all the words. Any special directions are in the back of the books. Each book is a new twist on a timeless story. Information on where to go online to download the song in audio form is also included in each book.